Need Information on Charismatic renewal

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Hislittlelady

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Is there anyone out there that can give me information about the Charismatic renewal movement within the Catholic Church? I have searched out my entire area, which is north of New York City, and have had no luck in finding one single Charismatic church anywhere.

I’m interested in this because I feel very drawn to worship in this way. Of course, please don’t misunderstand, I love my traditional church and also the way we pray, but I feel a calling to worship in a different way and I believe in the gifts of the spirit as well. I will never, not ever, leave my Catholic faith, so no other charismatic movement will work for me other then within the Catholic church, and I assume it is approved by the Holy See.

When I watch Pentacostals worship I feel very drawn to pray in that same way, but that would be impossible since that is not Catholic, but I think the Catholic Charismatics are similar, and I feel it would bring me to a higher level of worship.

If anyone can help me with information you may have on this , and what the Catholic church in general feels about them, please let me know so I can take this into consideration. I’d rather you tell me rather then send me links. I can find those on my own. I’m basically looking for what any of you might know and also to discuss the whole issue of Charismatics. I’d especially love to hear from anyone that is part of this movement within our holy apostolic church. :heaven:
 
When you say you believe in the gifts of the Spirit, what do you mean? Some pentcostals say that unless you exibit these signs, you are not saved. I’m guessing you mean that they are present today.
 
By the gifts of the spirit I mean the gift of prophecy, healing, speaking in tongues among a few others. Now as I said, I do not know enough about this movement, and the reason I’m so curious about it is that I love seeing how the Pentacostals sing their praises and it’s very moving to me. It gives me a feeling of being very close to God, but not at the expense of me leaving my holy Catholic church, but in addition to, such as e.g. Charismatic.

As far as not being saved because one does not have these gifts, I’ve never heard of anything more ridiculous then that. I am not necessarily looking for these gifts, but my main interest is in the way that they pray. It’s extremely appealing to me and draws me. I have some music by a wonderful Pentacostal singer, which I play very much, and I praise and worship with that music, and I have never felt closer to God then when I pray this way.

This is why I have asked around for some advice on this Charismatic movement. I’m not sure it would suit me, but just wondering about it. I guess I can sing my praises to the Lord in any way that makes me feel close to him, providing there is nothing in the praise music that would oppose my own faith. I have never once heard anything of that nature. I just love praying in that way, but I am Catholic right to the very heart of me.

Thanks for your (name removed by moderator)ut and if anyone else can share with me, it would be much appreciated. I’d just basically like some opinions about the Charismatics.

:highprayer:
 
I did a search of the forums and discovered there are numerous links regarding the Charismatic movement. I should have checked first. I read a few of them, but will continue on reading just to be sure that this doesn’t sound like it will be to my liking. I think it might be playing with fire since as far as I can see, there is not one single charismatic church or meeting place in my area, nor anywhere even close.

So maybe best to sing at home to my music, and praise and worship with it if I like that, and stay with my traditional Catholic faith and focus on the body and blood of Our Lord as I’ve always done. Prayer is a private communication between me and God anyway, so it really doesn’t matter how I pray to him, as long as I do. David sang his psalms, and the Lord was pleased with him, and I’m sure he will be equally pleased with my prayers which lift me right up to His throne. Thank you Jesus for showing me how to pray to you in spirit and in truth.
 
Hi,

This may help… Ralph Martin is a very well known speaker regarding the Charismatic movement. He has also regularly appeared on EWTN.
renewalministries.net/index.php

“Ralph Martin has been a leader in renewal movements in the Catholic Church for many years. After graduating from the University of Notre Dame, he did graduate work in philosophy at Princeton University and holds an MA in Theology, from Sacred Heart School of Theology in the Archdiocese of Detroit.”

“He worked for a number of years for the National Office of the Cursillo Movement and subsequently became a leader in the national and international development of the charismatic renewal movement in the Catholic Church.”

This site might also be of some help:
New York Catholic Charismatic Prayer Groups
catholiccharismaticny.org/index.html

This is a site from my area:
dccr.bobandmaryann.com/Home.html
 
Hislittlelady said:
Is there anyone out there that can give me information about the Charismatic renewal movement within the Catholic Church? I have searched out my entire area, which is north of New York City, and have had no luck in finding one single Charismatic church anywhere.

I’m interested in this because I feel very drawn to worship in this way. Of course, please don’t misunderstand, I love my traditional church and also the way we pray, but I feel a calling to worship in a different way and I believe in the gifts of the spirit as well. I will never, not ever, leave my Catholic faith, so no other charismatic movement will work for me other then within the Catholic church, and I assume it is approved by the Holy See.

When I watch Pentacostals worship I feel very drawn to pray in that same way, but that would be impossible since that is not Catholic, but I think the Catholic Charismatics are similar, and I feel it would bring me to a higher level of worship.

If anyone can help me with information you may have on this , and what the Catholic church in general feels about them, please let me know so I can take this into consideration. I’d rather you tell me rather then send me links. I can find those on my own. I’m basically looking for what any of you might know and also to discuss the whole issue of Charismatics. I’d especially love to hear from anyone that is part of this movement within our holy apostolic church. :heaven:
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Um, you chose the wrong section to post this. I don’t think people in the Traditional Catholicism forum are very fond of this movement. :rotfl:

As for me, if it is approved by the Vatican, I suppose it’s alright though it is not my personal preference.

This website of the NY Catholic Charismatic Groups wasn’t terribly hard to find on google:

catholiccharismaticny.org/

Here’s their upcoming events:

catholiccharismaticny.org/Events/Upcoming_Events/upcoming_events.html

It looks like there are plenty of parishes in your area which offer the services you are looking for.
 
I know that some Healing masses are charismatic masses. I went to a couple here (it really depends on which priest is saying the mass). We have both ends of the spectrum one is traditional so we have Adoration and the Mass and annointing with the Holy Oil when he says the Mass it is the Mass. The other priest is the pastor and he is very much into Charismatic and it does resemble a Pentacostal service…people are saying Amen and such while he’s preaching I just don’t care for it. During Adoration he is “filled with the Holy Spirit” and prays and we just kneel there and listen. I’m used to a little free time to say my own prayers and then follow along with the traditional prayers with the Priest. When the pastor has the mass it lasts for 3 hours (I went right from work to this mass) so that is just way too long for me-I ended up getting a migraine, oh I was so sick. I go to a healing mass and I get sick 🤷 ! Anyway, I was just naturally offended and shocked…meaning it just didn’t sit well with me at all. I don’t know what others here know, but I think somehow God lets me know intuitively something is just not right here. It’s just way too “out there” for me.
 
Thank you all so very much for all this information. It was just an idea I had and wanted to see what this was all about, but the truth of the matter is that I would most likely be like a fish out of water trying to worship and praise in a way so absolutely foreign then what I’ve known for all of my life. I’m sure it would probably end up turning me off, and I’ve read some controversial things about the Charismatic movement, which might be a little to the left of what the Catholic church teaches. We must be so careful about false doctrines and I’ve decided it’s best I stay with the church I’ve known to have all the truths dating back to the apostles. It’s probably a little dangerous to go off course with trying to break away into small groups even within our own church.

I will definitely review these links you’ve been nice enough to share with me, but think I will stay exactly where I am. I can sing anytime I want to, so I’ll leave it be.

Thanks to all
 
The Charismatic Renewal may have many aspects to it which are heretical…check out this blog

charismatic-heresy.blogspot.com/

I would stear clear from this movement.

Find yourself a Traditional Latin Mass. That is VERY charismatic. 😃
 
Hislittlelady said:
Thank you all so very much for all this information. It was just an idea I had and wanted to see what this was all about, but the truth of the matter is that I would most likely be like a fish out of water trying to worship and praise in a way so absolutely foreign then what I’ve known for all of my life. I’m sure it would probably end up turning me off, and I’ve read some controversial things about the Charismatic movement, which might be a little to the left of what the Catholic church teaches. We must be so careful about false doctrines and I’ve decided it’s best I stay with the church I’ve known to have all the truths dating back to the apostles. It’s probably a little dangerous to go off course with trying to break away into small groups even within our own church.

I will definitely review these links you’ve been nice enough to share with me, but think I will stay exactly where I am. I can sing anytime I want to, so I’ll leave it be.

Thanks to all
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I don’t know if I’d necessarily call it “left”. The leftists I know simply go to the heretical churches.

The people I know who go to Charismatic Masses pray the Rosary and go to Marian and Eucharistic devotions and the only addition I saw to their Mass was a “praying with tongues” bit somewhere in the middle.

But it really depends though. I think LifeTeen is also considered charismatic. Stylistically, they may be comitting a lot of liturigcal abuses, but theologically, their catechism programs may actually be teaching orthodox material.

I would apply the term “left” to the dissenters of the Church who teach heresy (e.g., female priests, pro-choice, etc.).
 
I would avoid it.

Jabbering gibberish is the polar opposite of being understood by everyone, which is what happened to the early apostles. I’ve read the Holy Spirit was sent to them so that everyone could understand them, as were not multi-lingual, and to get the Church of to a miraculous start; miracles to convince heathens.

**Now that the successors to the apostles, our priests, are in every country in the world, I wonder what use gibbering and falling over are, **except for uptight religious people to let themselves go, to get attention or to join in what everyone else is doing.

If people are doing this* in the middle of a Mass*, I can imagine the Devil having a good laugh about it.

The standard prayers of the Church are succinct and eloquent appeals to Heaven. I too make up my own, then I realise Christ and the Church say it better e.g. ‘The Our Father’. My opinion: If you’re getting a bit stale, change, but don’t always make up your own prayers. We’re Catholics, after all, not protestants.

Do indeed search on ‘Charismatic Renewal’ in these forums. May your eyes be opened to the truth.

Just realised: Is even the name deceitful? Just what was ‘old’ about our religion that needs to be ‘renewed’. You can see its protestant origins even in that.
 
Charismatics tend to view the gift of tongues less as a means to communicate to people who otherwise would not be able to understand and more of a “spiritual prayer language” of sorts. Interestingly, the Catechism actually explains that prayer is not supposed to be brought about in such a random spontaneous fashion:

CCC 2650 Prayer cannot be reduced to the spontaneous outpouring of interior impulse: in order to pray, one must have the will to pray. Nor is it enough to know what the Scriptures reveal about prayer: one must also learn how to pray. Through a living transmission (Sacred Tradition) within “the believing and praying Church,” the Holy Spirit teaches the children of God how to pray.

Thus, the way to pray is with ones mind not ones feelings. Christ taught us to pray the Our Father. He said, “When you pray say…” He did not say, “When you pray just say whatever is randomly on your mind or what you feel or just blurt out whatever noises you feel like to make you feel warm and fuzzy inside.”

The modern practice is not rooted in the 2000 year Tradition of the Church. After the apostolic age, babbling (i.e. "speaking in tongues in modern practice) was only performed by heretics and was a sign of demon possession. There are only a select very few saints after the apostolic age, who were enabled to speak in a foreign language to speak the gospel to people who otherwise would not have been able to hear it. It was never done in the manner as today, i.e. ecstatic utterances.

The modern practice began with protestants in the late 1800s and early 1900s. It did not spread to Catholics until the 1960s. The first Catholics to adopt these protestant practices read heretical protestant literature that included information on the charismatics practice. They also were influenced by protestant pastors who laid their hands on Catholics and then they allegedly received the Spirit. Such an idea is so foreign to the Catholic mind in light of Tradition. Read info on the forum I posted above. It will definitely serve to enlighten. Feel free to chime in on that discussion as well if you like.
 
After returning to the catholic church I knew of a prayer meeting that I wanted to go to, a charismatic prayer meeting held in my catholic church. But I let fear keep me from going for 6 months. Finally a priest involved in this movement when it began in the 70’s suggested I go to this same meeting after I met with him for direction. I had been avoiding going due to fear of the unknown I guess. I went and shared the poetry I had been writing and everyone was very kind and encouraging. They helped me to not hide away any gifts that are to be shared or be afraid of sharing. The woman who leads the group is a family friend and very a devout catholic. I can’t argue with all the postings against this movement I can only share my personal experience. I can say it deepened my relationship with God and I learned a lot from everyone in this group. I don’t really know of a whole charismatic church but in some churches they offer what’s called a life in the spirit seminar, I think the teachings are based on Pentecost. I missed the seminar because I waited to long to go. But I did learn there that discernment is important. No one says you have to believe every thing one person may say, but in coming closer to the Lord through scripture and praying for discernment you will know when something just isn’t right,when it is against the teachings of the church. I never had that feeling with this group of people. We gathered and shared what the Lord was doing in our lives, we encouraged each other to remain faithful in the face of adversity and prayed for others we were a group of friends in Christ. I am sure that there may be extremes as there could be in any group, but I knew this is where the Lord wanted me at that time. I think we can’t forget that God can speak to us in many ways, of course Mass and Sacraments offer us communion with Our Lord, but if we fail to see Him speaking to us in other ways or trying to teach us by means of other faithfully devout Catholics we may miss out on more of what He wants to share with us. Speaking in tongues is in the bible, the holy spirit coming upon us is there, so how can this movement be wrong? I truly believe the charismatic group I attended was blessed by the holy spirit. I may not be the smartest catholic but I know what my heart feels. As with anything we need to be cautious but if I hadn’t gone I know what I would have missed and that is witnessing the Holy Spirit through honest sharing and prayer within others lives, it definitely taught me to not be afraid to speak up and share with joy the Lord Jesus and His love!🙂
Samuel 10:5-13
 
I wouldn’t go seeking the charismatic renewal. Let it come to you. Trust in the LORD. Remember to discern the spirit of the renewal. The line between the occult and the renewal can often be vague.

As you can tell, I am not a fan, but don’t let that stop you. I seek not to quench the spirit. I’m just real real iffy on it. Well… I’m iffy on anything that doesn’t have its origins in a major major saint of the Church, Tradition with a capital ‘T’, etc… The charismatic thing started in a college dormitary.

It might be legit. If what you seek is oneness and closeness with your Father in heaven. He is already the light inside of you. He breathed life into you giving you his breath, your soul, at conception. What works for one does not work for all…

It’s a truism that regular fasting and penance does us good. It clears our minds to pray (talk to God) and read Scripture and important work on the faith (listen to God) after you pray.

I pray on an empty stomach. Some people have a hard time with that. I also try to pray at least me rosary in the morning before I do anything but let the dog and cat out. I’ve also learned my rosary in another language besides English to give me better perspective (an example of a penance). I also try to think of Jesus through out the day. If seek the Spirit become obsessed like a giddy school girl for Jesus’ wounds. The very act of the nails being driven and whip cracking his flesh. Feel bad for God. It’s okay even Jesus needed comforting. Give comfort to God. Give comfort to strangers. Say, “Lord Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on me.” Thumb through the books of Numbers, Daniel, and Tobias and learn the prayers in the Old Testament.

There is a lot of ground that needs covering to prepare the soul to discern spirits before engaging in them. My sister scared the daylights out of the family with a wee-G board years back. We had to exorcize. Spirits are no joke.

But it is nice to feel the community. So, I’m just still iffy on the charasmatic thing.

As a disclaimer to soften the blow of the Latin Mass clarion – What matters is that the Mass is Licit and Valid. Most Masses Latin or Vulgar are illicit in one way or another, but it is very difficult to make a Mass invalid. Latin has it’s place and Vulgar has its place. If I were a priest I’d probably use the Latin Mass, just as I would make available the option to do the Mass in French, Italian, English, Spanish,… etc. My personal preference is a good healthy mix of Latin, Greek, and English (or Spanish, or Italian…) Latin definitely has its place… As does Greek, and the Semetic tongues.

The only tongue that isn’t allowed at Mass is the gibberish tongue thing. That’s a grave matter.
 
You have all been a wonderful help in keeping everything in perspective. I see that everyone has their own (name removed by moderator)ut and opinions on the Charismatic Renewal which is a good thing. The word discernment comes to mind because that’s exactly what we need to be aware of any situation that could lead us down a path that might lead us away from the true teachings of our Holy Catholic Church.

I’m sure the Charismatic can be an individual experience as well as a group experience. I’m going to put this aside and I don’t think I would be comfortable with it as I’d initially thought. I have never in my life prayed in any other way aside from how I was taught through my early years in Catechism. I only know the Catholic way of praying, and any other way would definitely feel very strange to me.

I guess I just got curious about it because I love to sing the beautiful holy music that I enjoy so much. The music inspires me to such a level as to make me feel I’m actually at the throne of God. A great blessing to me. I sure did learn plenty from all of your information that you were kind enough to share on the forum, and it has served to reaffirm the deep connection to my Catholic faith. I honestly don’t think the Charismatic is for me after all.

Singing is one thing, and lifting your heart and soul with psalms to God is a good thing too, but our prayers, as taught by our holy Catholic Church, is a whole other matter. That is the true way to Christ, through the prayers that are part of our one holy Catholic Apostolic church, that have come down to us through the centuries, through our sacred traditions, as taught by the early church fathers.

Blessings to all and thank you so much everyone for all this great information. It has set me back on course.

:highprayer:
 
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